Pan of Dirt and a Little Hope

[Verse 1]
Sun comes up on a foggy hollow
Coffee in a jar
Hands still cold
Boot prints cut through rhododendron
Chasing one more story I was told
Rusty pan and a dented shovel
Gravel creek that murmurs my name
Every swirl of sand and water
Feels like betting pennies on a flame
[Chorus]
Just a pan of dirt and a little hope
Knees in the cold
Slow rolling slope
Maybe find a flash in the mountain rain
Or just wash away my worry and my pain
If there’s a glimmer in this muddy stream
I’ll stake my heart on that tiny gleam
[Verse 2]
Saw my granddad’s mark on a maple trunk
Carved back when his back was strong
Said “Boy
This ridge don’t owe you nothing
But it might feed you if you sing along”
So I hum that tune as the water circles
Watch each fleck slide over my hand
Can’t tell sweat from the drops that hit me
Can’t tell faith from stubborn in this land
[Chorus]
Just a pan of dirt and a little hope
Knees in the cold
Slow rolling slope
Maybe find a flash in the mountain rain
Or just wash away my worry and my pain
If there’s a glimmer in this muddy stream
I’ll stake my heart on that tiny gleam
[Bridge]
Maybe I strike it
Maybe I don’t (oh yeah)
Still these hills feel like home
Rich or busted
I’ll be here
Where every stone shines when the sun comes near
[Chorus]
Just a pan of dirt and a little hope
Knees in the cold
Slow rolling slope
Maybe find a flash in the mountain rain
Or just wash away my worry and my pain
If there’s a glimmer in this muddy stream
I’ll stake my heart on that tiny gleam
Yeah
I’ll stake my heart on that tiny gleam

High-energy bluegrass with fiddle leads, bright banjo rolls, and upright bass walking hard on the downbeat. Male vocals with tight three-part harmonies in the chorus, mandolin chops driving the backbeat. Verses stay nimble and narrative; chorus lifts with sustained harmonies and a small tempo push, then a short instrumental break trading licks between fiddle and banjo before the final hook., bluegrass